Patrik Ervell

HAWAIIAN GOTHICNew York: Patrik Ervell’s chosen aesthetic can often be described as austere and utilitarian, a kind of cleaned up refinement for the modern man. For S/S 12, the New York designer experimented with pops of color more than he ever has, taking the opportunity to send out his version of a Hawaiian shirt — a watercolor, hand-painted silk version that perfectly complemented the glossy surfaces of waxed outerwear and cotton sateen military pants. It was almost as if a soldier on a military base on Honolulu took flight to Tokyo for the weekend and returned with a new techno-savvy style. “The powers of commerce and finance mixing with the grit and toughness of the street,” was written in Ervell’s show notes, leading many in the audience to expect a much more rigid assortment than what actually came down the runway. Perhaps that surprise says it all — that the leading menswear designers of today are finding a curious balance between uniformity and innovation. —Michael Fisher